Best oils for Indian cooking – With the variety of oils available in the grocery stores, it is often overwhelming to pick the one that would be right in terms of nutrition value, taste and smoke point. This post is an attempt to eliminate confusion and help you pick the right oil for Indian cooking.
Indian food is known for its diversity. How a dish is cooked depends on primarily region and cooking style. Choosing the right kind of oil is important since it not only makes a huge impact on the nutritional value of the dish but also the taste and aroma.
How to choose the right oil for Indian cooking
Be mindful of the fat content
Oils are made of fats and some are better than others. Use the following guidelines –
1) Use unsaturated fats such as monounsaturated and polyunsaturated fats
- Monounsaturated fats are heart-healthy fats that you can find in oils such as peanut, avocado, olive, rice bran, and almond.
- Polyunsaturated fats are essential fats that our body can’t generate. They are found in vegetable oils such as sunflower, safflower, soybean, walnut, and corn. They lower LDL (bad cholesterol) and increase HDL (good cholesterol) and also help keep blood sugar in check.
2) Limit saturated fats especially the ones made from animal fats (e.g lard, duck fat etc). These are detrimental to cardiovascular health. Coconut oil and ghee are saturated fats that promote good health (source – why coconut oil is not poison and why ghee is good for you).
3) Avoid Trans Fats – They are unsaturated fats that are converted into saturated fats by hydrogenation to increase their shelf life. Trans fat raises LDL (bad cholesterol) and lowers HDL (good cholesterol). Examples of trans fat are Vanaspati, margarine, shortening, etc. It is cheap and is therefore commonly used in restaurants, processed foods, store-bought cakes, and pastries – in short wherever food is mass produced.
Use unrefined (cold pressed oils) instead of refined oils
Cold pressed oils (kacchi ghani) are extracted in a heat-controlled environment which yields a high-quality oil that retains nearly all of its natural nutrients. Extracting refined oils involves using high heat and chemical solvents. This destroys the flavor and nutrients in oils. More info in this video – All about oils.
Choose oils based on what you are cooking and what technique you are using
Oils with a low smoking point can be used for sautéing, whereas oils with a high smoking point should be used for deep-frying.
Note – The smoke point is the temperature at which oil starts to burn and smoke, imparting a burnt flavor to the dish.
- Oils with low smoking point (burns easily) – Cold pressed oils (with the exception of coconut and avocado).
- Oils with high smoking point (don’t burn easily) – Ghee, Coconut Oil, Avocado oil
Recommended oils for Indian cooking
Indian cooking has typically made use of coconut, peanut/groundnut, sesame, mustard oils and ghee for cooking depending on what was available in the region. Keeping our cultural heritage in mind and also, bearing in mind the advent of new oils such as avocado and rice bran oils, here are my recommendations –
- Ghee – for tempering, deep-frying, biryanis, and desserts
- If you don’t want to use ghee for deep-frying, you can use Avocado oil or Rice bran oil instead.
- For everyday cooking (sauteing and pan-frying), pick two unrefined, cold-pressed oils of your choice from this list and alternate between them (more info on this in the FAQ section below).
- Peanut (groundnut) oil
- Mustard oil (for making Indian pickles and North Indian & Bengali dishes)
- Sunflower oil or Safflower oil
- Sesame oil (gingelly or til) – Used in South Indian dishes from Tamilnadu and Andhra/ Telangana
- Coconut oil – for tempering, baking, South Indian cooking, deep frying
- Specialty oils such as Olive oil (for Italian dishes and baking), toasted sesame oil for Indo-Chinese, Thai and Chinese cooking.
Note – There are a host of other oils that are available in the market such as canola oil, corn oil, and soybean oil. They do have their own benefits, but the oils listed above are best suited for Indian food.
I think it is best explained in an infographic so here’s one for those who are visual learners.
Frequently asked questions
How to store oil?
Store oil in a cool, dry place and away from direct sunlight. Follow the directions of the manufacturer on the expiry date.
Should we blend oils?
My only argument against it would be cold pressed oils have strong aroma and flavor and this might impact the taste of the dish. Instead, you could always stock different kinds of cold-pressed oils and choose the oil based on the region that dish originates from.
Should we change oil frequently – say, every 3 months?
Instead of changing the oil every 3 months, it is best to use switch oils for every meal so that you get a healthy dose of polyunsaturated fatty acids such as Omega-3 (nut-based oils) and Omega-6 (vegetable based oils) daily.
Can you reuse cooking oil after deep frying?
It may not be practical to throw away deep-fried oil that is why most folks reuse oil. The problem with reusing oil is that every time it is reused, the smoke point reduces. Reusing oil that has been heated past its smoke point produces free radicals that are detrimental to our health in the long run.
So, here are the guidelines I follow –
- Use only oils that have a high smoking point for deep-frying.
- Don’t reuse the oil for deep-frying again instead use it for everyday cooking (sautéing and pan-frying).
To reuse oils, follow the instructions below –
- Let it cool down completely.
- Strain to remove any food particles and to prevent the oil from going rancid.
- Store in a cool, dry place.
- Reuse the oil for similar food items.
- Get rid of it after 2 months or after 2 uses. Also, discard if the oil becomes thick and sticky.
How to dispose cooking oils?
Do not drain it in the kitchen sink or toilet bowl. Instead, put it in a sealable container and discard it in regular garbage.
Here’s a summary
- Avoid trans-fat and use unsaturated fats for your daily cooking.
- Limit saturated fats from animal fats. Not all saturated fats are bad for you – for example, ghee and coconut oil.
- Avoid refined/fortified oils and choose unrefined, cold pressed oils instead.
- Buy cold-pressed oil in small batches because they can go rancid quickly.
- Oils with low smoking point should be used for sautéing whereas oils with a high smoking point are used for deep-frying.
Hi Anushree,
This is Sharat. I am based out in Pune.
Just wanted to know what are the best options to use for normal regular cooking for making Indian Curries(Sabji) like bhindi, bengan, Alu Shimla mirch, bottle gourd, bitter gourd, panner normal sabji.. etc) in your sequence on the basis of long run health and wellness factor so that we can be fit in longer run from the options below:
1. A2 desi cow ghee (with some exact name which I can purchase from market)
2. cold pressed Rice bran oil
3. cold pressed coconut/groundnut oils
4. wooden pressed organic coconut/groundnut oils
It will be helpful when you will arrange the above options from long run health perspective also please add some exact ghee or oil name which I can purchase from market and start using. It will be really be a great help and I will be thankful to you for the life time.
Please let me know on this.
Thanks a lot in Advance.
Cheers.
Great question, Sharat. I would highly recommend you talk to your doctor or dietitian and get guidance on this matter.
Hi anushree, great article. One question, I have been unable to find a good cold pressed rice bran oil for deep frying. All i see is refined oils.
Coconut oil isn’t an option due to the family’s taste preferences and the A2 ghee is just too expensive as a frequent option.
Could you suggest how I can get hold of some good quality rice bran oil?
Hi Manjushree – Where are you based out of?
Hi…can I use corn oil to make simple carrot-mangoe pickle and store without fridge????
I think mustard oil works best for pickles. If you have followed the pickling process properly and no moisture was introduced your pickle should last without refrigeration.
Can you use cold pressed oil for cooking vegetables in pressure cooker ?
TIA.
Yes, Avani. I use it all the time.
Hello Maam,
Kindly recommend Oils to be used for Maharashtrian foods. Like for daily use and for deep frying. I have done few research (reading articles only) and have observed that for deep frying use Rice bran oils and for regular use Sunflower oils. Also help whether Blended oils sold by companies like Maricco under brand name Saffola Gold, Active, Total and by Agro under brand name Sundrop Gold lite, Superlite advanced, Lite, Sundrop Heart etc are good for daily use.
Hi Swapnil – How about peanut oil? It goes really well with Maharashtrian cuisine. Keep it simple and use what your mom/grandmother used. For deep frying use either coconut or rice bran oil. Stick to cold-pressed oils.
Hello Anu can I use mustard oil is deep frying and daily cooking
Yes, Nishi. The smoke point of unrefined mustard oil is 350 degrees F. It is good for stir-frying. I have heard that to improve the flavor of mustard oil it needs to be heated till it smokes and then you should lower the temperature to what’s needed for cooking. Hope this helps.
What are the traditional and preferred cooking oils for Kannada recipes ?
Coconut oil is what my mom/grandmom used. Ghee was used on special occasions.
Can I use physically refined rice bran oil from Fortune and Groundnut oil in the everyday cooking routine??
End of the day, physically refined oil is refined oil. It doesn’t use chemicals during the refining process like chemical refining but the process does involve high temperature.
Hello Anushree,
The above article is quite useful with the detailed description. I wanted to clarify if cold pressed oils like peanut, coconut and rice bran can be used for deep frying? In my article readings from other sites I could understand that cold pressed oils loose their nutrients when heated to high smoke points, except for coconut oil. Please advise. Thank you
Hi Raji – Usually cold-pressed oils have low smoking points making them unsuitable for deep frying. But there are some exceptions like coconut oil where the smoke point is close to 350°F. You usually won’t find cold-pressed rice bran oil. It usually is expeller pressed and has a high smoking point making it suitable for deep frying.
What about Rapeseed oil?
Ela, rapeseed oil is the same as canola oil. This article is a good read – https://www.mindbodygreen.com/articles/what-is-rapeseed-oil
Very well described… I also use ghee,coconut oil and avocado oil in my daily routine cooking.
Thanks for sharing your research 😊
Vandana
You are welcome, Vandana!
Very nice article well written .can u clarify small doubt people hving high triglycerides can use coconut and peanut oils??
Hi, Rekha – Thanks for stopping by. It is best you talk to your doctor/dietician regarding this.
Hi
Very informative and knowledgeable article. Could u also please share that for what use could vegetable oil be used deep frying our regular cooking like sauteing or pan frying etc ?
Avoid refined vegetable oils. You might find this article helpful – https://foodbabe.com/cooking-oils/
Thanks for Sharing. It’s very helpful. So kind of you.
You are welcome, Sheetal.
Thanks for the well researched write- up.There is lot of confusion among the consumers about the oils to be used for daily cooking and frying etc. Your writing dispels the haze surrounding various brands of oil being marketed by big business houses in India. Quite satisfied with your explanations. Thanks a great deal.
You are welcome, Shubha. Thanks for your kind comments.
Great job Anu.
Do folks outside India need to buy according to their local produce – because it’s based on region? If peanuts are in production nearby , get peanut oil from local farmers store?
Thanks, Shilpa. I prefer buying local and farmers market are the best.